1. Field of the Invention:
This invention relates to disc recording and transcribing apparatus in general, and more specifically to apparatus for concurrently transferring a disc from the load station to the record/playback station while a disc in the record/playback station is transferred to the unload station in a disc dictation machine.
2. Description of the Prior Art:
U.S. Pat. No. 3,789,160 entitled "Dictation Apparatus with Disc Loading, Feeding and Ejecting Feature", issued to James D. Bruer, et al., Jan. 29, 1974, and assigned to the instant assignee, discloses a disc dictation system featuring automated loading, feeding, and unloading operations wherein a load station, record/playback station and unload (eject) station are arranged in a linear arrangement. In order to effect the loading and unloading of discs, a loader carrier is provided which moves on guide shafts from an extreme left home position beneath the load station to the extreme right position adjacent the unload station. The loader carrier has attached to it a picker and a kicker (ejector). The picker selects the bottom disc from a stack of discs in the load station for movement to the record/playback station while the ejector concurrently removes the used disc from the record/playback station for transfer to the unload station.
The prior art carrier member is cast metal and requires additional machining to provide holes for attachment of the ejector and picker. Also, insert bearings must be added to reduce friction between the carrier member and the guide shafts.
The working end of the picker is substantially parallel to the surface of the discs to be selected from the input station and terminates in a flat surface. This requires precise adjustment of the picker. If the picker is adjusted too high, both the flat end and the machined portion will select a disc resulting in a jam at the stripper plate. If the adjustment is too low, the picker will not select the disc at all.
The ejector disclosed in the prior art also offers disadvantages in efficiency of operation. The guide slots in the prior art ejector are comprised of a ramp-shaped aperture and a lower horizontal aperture causing an out and down motion of the ejector when pushing the disc into the aperture of a cartridge inserted in the unload station. This motion of the ejector requires a precise adjustment of the carrier member or the unloaded disc will not be inserted properly into the output cartridge resulting in a jam at the next unload cycle.